Filling The Drying Trays - Backyard Pro Butcher Series Instruction Manual

PARTS AND OPERATING INSTRUCTIONS
The skin of many foods naturally protects the food but it can hamper the dehydration process.
During dehydration, moisture escapes best from a cut or broken surface not through the tough skin.
Therefore, the larger the cut area, the faster and better the food will dehydrate.
For this reason thin stalked vegetables like green beans, asparagus, and rhubarb should be cut in half
the long way, or with an extreme diagonal cut to expose as much of the inner parts of the food as
possible.
Fruit should be sliced across the core and not down through the core. Try to always make thin flat cuts.
Broccoli stems should be halved or quartered depending upon diameter. Small fruits like strawberries
can be cut in half. Even smaller berries should either be cut in half or blanched slightly to break the
skin.

FILLING THE DRYING TRAYS

When loading the food into the trays, you can use all of the tray's surface, but some airflow must be
maintained. Try to place the food in a single layer whenever possible. This is particularly important
with foods like banana slices and pineapple rings and not quite as important with beans. If some of
the pieces come out with too much moisture when you are finished, one of the reasons is that it might
have been covered by other pieces of food.
Dehydration removes the moisture and will cause the food to shrink as it dries. This allows you to store
the same amount of food in a smaller space. Chopped food should not be spread thicker than 3/8 inch.
If needed, use mesh sheet to hold food.
It may be necessary to stir the finely chopped food once or twice during dehydration to ensure
even drying of all the pieces. To do so, turn the machine off, unplug it, remove the trays, stir, then
reassemble and restart the machine according to the instructions.
PREVENTING DRIPPING
Some foods such as very ripe tomatoes and citrus or sugared fruits may drip. Dripping from a tray
above can change the flavor of different foods on lower trays. To help lessen dripping after placing
food on drying trays and before placing them on the dehydrator base, tap the tray firmly downward on
a towel laid on the counter top a few times to remove excess moisture.
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